Process for separating iron and nickel from copper in certain ores and masses.



wILnELM BORCHERS amp EDUARID rmncss; or AACHEN, GERMANY.

PROCESS FOR SEPARA'IING' IRON AND He Drawing.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we,. Dr. WI HELM Boacnsns, professor, asubject of the German Emperor, and resident of 15 Ludwigsallee, Aachen, Germany, and Enuann Tnnmzs, en ineer, a subject of the Grand Duchess of mxemburg, and resident of 28 laichncrstrasse. Aachen, Germany, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Processes for Separating Iron and Nickel from Cop er in Certain Ores and Masses; and we 0 hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to a process for separating nickel and copper from ores, metallurgical products and waste containing these two metals.

In the case of ores, these are smelted to a matte by any usual known process. Even from ores containing comparatively little nickel and copper, it is easy, if necessary with a preliminary roasting, to produce a matte containing about 10 to 12 per cent. of Ni-l-Cu.

It is well known that besides the sulfids of nickel and copper, such a matte contains a preponderance of iron sulfid.

Experiments made by Lehmer in the year 1906 at the Institute for Metallurgy and Elcctrometallurgy of the Royal Technical University of Aachen, zlletnllurg'ic 1906, vol. 8, page 540), showed that very pure metals could be produced directly by electrically smelting the sulfids of most ore metals with carbon and limestone or lime. According to this. it would be an easy matter to produce copper-nickel alloys by enriching the matte to a sullicient degree. The market for copper-nickel alloys is however very much more restricted than that for ferronickel. Now since large quantities of iron salfids are present in copper-containing nickel pyrites and also in the matte that has been produced bv smelting from such pyrites and also from other nickel ores, it would be very important to be able to work a such ores or such matte for the production of form-nickel. A high percentage of contained cop er is however a drawback in ferro-nicke It has now been discovered that copper can be separated for the greater part from specification of Letters Patent. "a plication ma lay an, 1914. Serial no. moses.

NICKEL FROM COPPER IN CERTAIN ORES AND MASSES.

Patented Sept. '7, 1M5.

nickel and iron by melting copper-nickel matte with larger quantities of lime but.- with smaller quantities of carbon than the quantities required according to the reaction equations stated by Lehman According to Lehmer the reactions are as follows;

Now for the purpose of preventing the copper from separating out as \vell,the following procedure is employed :-First the matte is melted down on the hearth (lined with carbon plugging or lining) of a suitable t'urnace, preterably an electric furnace. It rich ores are available. directly these are mcltrd down in the said furnace. The sullids react very little with the carbon lining. Then an excess of lime (limestone may be used if desired) is added and also melted down. ()a the above reaction taking place, first the iron sulfids and nickel sulfids that are present in a largely preponderant quantity are reduccd. This is accompanied by continually increasing quantities of calcium sulfid. These last quantities however combine chiefly with the copper sulfid to form solutions or compounds which are a considerable hindrance to the decomposition of the copper sulfid as set forth in the above equations. Owing however to the circumstance that the carbon required for these reactions must first be taken from the hearth lining. that is to say, the said carbon is not distributed in the melt. while iron and nickel which are the first metals to become separated out. are present on the hearth. this reagent can have only a verysmall action upon the mixture of copper sulfid, lime and calcium sulfid. The carbon acts partly only in an indirect manner, by being first dissolved by the iron or form-nickel. whereupon only then it comes into reaction with the melt floating above it. It is to be understood that it is not necessary to keep strictly to this oxanr 810 as regards the supplying of the caronaceous reducing agent. The example. is intended simply to serve as an illustration of the fundamental idea of this invention, namely, of causing the reducing agent to act gradually, in order that a first iron shall be separated out to a preponderant extent, and t on nickel shall be separated out as well Eli) lho

as iron, so as to increase the amount of sulfids in a basic slag, which sulfids retard the Si multaneous production of copper as much as possible. By fulfilling these conditions, it is an easy matter by'smelting comparatively poor copper-nickel matte's, to produce ferro-nickel which is poor in copper, and

contains 15 to 20 per cent. of nickel.

Since the melt which contains calcium sulfid andwhich is formed as a highly basic matte, takes up a portion of the nickel in addition to the main quantity of copper,-the said melt' might be utilized as an addition to ores whichare to be smelted to matte.

Having now particularly described 'and ascertained the nature of our said invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what We claim is:

terial to reduce only the iron and nickel and separating the ferro-n'ickel constituents.

3. The method of. recovering iron and nickel from sulfid. ores, matte and like material containing 'copper, which comprises smelting the material with anexcess of calcareousflux and sufii'c ent carbonaceous material to reduce only'the iron andnickel and allowing the carbonaceousreducing agent to act gradually upon the material being treated, for'the purpose describedw 4:. The method of recovering iron and nickel from sulfid ores, matte and like material containing copper, which comprises smelting the materlal with an excess of calcareous flux and suflicient carbonaceous material to first reduce only the iron and nickel and to cause the resulting quantity of calcium sulfid as retard the separation ofcopper, whereby ferro-nicke1 may be obtained substantially free from copper.

In testimony whereof we aflixed our signatures, inpresence of two Witnesses.

DR.- WILHELM BORCHERS. I :EDUARD THILGES. Witnesses: a

HENRY QUADFLIEG,

PAUL Dncas. 

